Zachary Rackham
Zachary Rackham, also known by the nickname Calico Zack, is a self-made billionaire and the owner of Rackham Capital Investments. Rackham has developed a reputation over the years as a cunning, self-serving profiteer, and although he maintains that he founded his company after finding success as an independent trader, it is rumored that he was actually a ruthless pirate. Timeline 20 APR 3305 *Taja Gavaris, the CFO of Rackham Capital Investments, has unexpectedly resigned from her position and subsequently emigrated from Federal space. Several other employees who were loyal to Gavaris resigned alongside her. All chose to waive their final salaries and bonuses, which totalled approximately 365 million credits according to sources within the company. Journalist Bryanna Blanco commented in The Federal Times: "It has become apparent that the Federal Intelligence Agents who acquired our data on Zachary Rackham were in fact imposters working for him, employing fake credentials. With our research, Rackham would be capable of blackmailing fellow ex-pirate Taja Gavaris into resigning – the corporate equivalent of assassinating a rival. Naturally, we cannot prove this is what has occurred. But rest assured that we'll continue keeping a close eye on Calico Zack." The Federal Times also confirmed that a donation of 36.5 million credits has been received from Rackham Capital Investments, "in recognition of the organisation's dedication to ethical journalism".GalNet: Taja Gavaris Resigns as Rackham CFO 12 APR 3305 *The Federal Intelligence Agency has denied that it is conducting a criminal investigation of Rackham Capital Investments. A spokesperson for the FIA gave the following statement: "Contrary to recent statements by the journalist Bryanna Blanco, we did not contact her seeking to obtain documentation, and are not running any investigation. There is no evidence of criminality within Rackham Capital Investments. Our agency has received charitable donations from that organisation in the past, and Mr Rackham himself is a long-standing member of the FIA Civilian Oversight Board. Such a relationship would not be possible if we had any doubts about the integrity of Mr Rackham's business dealings." Bryanna Blanco published a response in The Federal Times: "If this is true, then who were the FIA agents that visited our offices? I spoke to them personally and asked to see their credentials. Who has obtained our data regarding the criminal histories of Zachary Rackham and many others?"GalNet: Rackham Investigation Ruled Out 04 APR 3305 *The Federal Times has been asked to assist with a criminal investigation into Rackham Capital Investments. Journalist Bryanna Blanco reported on the details: "Operatives from the Federal Intelligence Agency have contacted our offices regarding the recent deaths at Zachary Rackham's company. We are cooperating with their inquiry and have agreed to share all relevant documentation. The Federal Times has been monitoring the suspicious activities of 'Calico Zack' for years, so we're relieved that the authorities are at last taking these allegations seriously. Our discoveries about Taja Gavaris – who seems to be clearing the path up the corporate ladder by any means necessary – are of particular concern. We expect Rackham, Gavaris and many other ex-pirates masquerading as businessmen to answer all charges brought against them."GalNet: Rackham Under Investigation 29 MAR 3305 *The head of personnel at Rackham Capital Investments has died in an accident, becoming the second senior-level employee to have died in recent weeks. Journalist Bryanna Blanco commented in The Federal Times: "Senior executive Derrin O'Shea was killed when his personal limousine malfunctioned and crashed. The incident has not been ruled as suspicious. O'Shea's position was filled within hours by a supporter of Taja Gavaris, however. Gavaris herself inherited the CFO role in a similar fashion following her predecessor's recent death. With two close allies gone, CEO Zachary Rackham must feel under threat. This corporate power struggle increasingly resembles two pirate captains fighting to become overall leader. The authorities have again declined to begin a formal investigations into Gavaris and Rackham, claiming a lack of evidence. How many more casualties must occur before this conflict is taken seriously?"GalNet: Second Fatality in Rackham Conflict 23 MAR 3305 *Taja Gavaris, the new CFO of Rackham Capital Investments, has been accused of having a criminal background as a pirate leader. Journalist Bryanna Blanco made this declaration in The Federal Times: "During my reporting on multi-billionaire Zachary Rackham, I have become convinced that he and many others employed by Rackham Capital Investments were once pirates, who laundered their stolen money and moved into legitimate business. New research has proved that Taja Gavaris was once a criminal rival of Rackham. I believe that Gavaris used her knowledge of Rackham's past to blackmail her way into his organisation, and is now challenging for ownership by eliminating his loyal supporters. The Federal Times has published many similar revelations about 'Calico Zack' over the years, yet no criminal investigation has been established. Perhaps this time the authorities will investigate before Gavaris's vendetta escalates further, potentially endangering civilian lives."GalNet: Pirate History of Taja Gavaris Unveiled 15 MAR 3305 *Rackham Capital Investments has appointed a new CFO following the death of its former financial officer. Business analyst Marlon Royce reported on the situation: "Aaron Salazar was CFO at Rackham Capital Investments from its inception. After a sudden cardiac arrest at the Ivystone Spa proved terminal, the board of directors voted to install Taja Gavaris as his replacement. Little is known of Gavaris outside of her meteoric rise up the corporate ladder. CEO Zachary Rackham was not present at the vote, the CEO has taken a leave of absence to cope with his grief. The multi-billionaire businessman, also known as 'Calico Zack', established the company following a lucrative career as an independent trader, although rumours persist that he actually operated as a pirate. Insiders have speculated that Gavaris's appointment may be part of a scheme to oust Rackham from the top spot."GalNet: Rackham Fatality Creates Power Struggle 24 OCT 3304 *Technology journalist Harlow Nassry has published an article in The Federal Times regarding a mysterious criminal group known only as 'the Collective': "Several recent digital crimes, including the theft of a billion credits from Zachary Rackham, have now been attributed to the Collective. Security forces have launched investigations, but it seems that the name is already well known among hacker communities. The Collective is a group of anti-authority 'hacktivists' who believe that all information should be publicly available. It has existed for some years, but until recently its activities have been small scale. Nobody knows the identity of the group's members, which has no spokespersons or apparent leaders. As anarchists, they delight in flouting the law, believing that all data should be in the public domain – except, of course, data about themselves. Some see the Collective as irresponsible criminals, while others paint them as modern-day Robin Hoods. Either way, as possibly the best hackers in the galaxy, it's likely we’ll be hearing more about them in the future."GalNet: The Collective 18 OCT 3304 *Billionaire businessman Zachary Rackham has been targeted by a highly sophisticated hack that successfully withdrew 1 billion credits from his personal account. A spokesperson for Rackham Capital Investments informed shareholders: "We have reported the theft to the authorities, and are reviewing our computer security systems. The only clue as to the criminals' identity is a message they left encoded in Mr. Rackham's account: 'The Collective plays to win.'" Financial journalist Bryanna Blanco commented in The Federal Times: "The purpose of the hack was evidently to reclaim the billion-credit prize that Rackham 'won' in the Federal Grand Lottery. What Rackham Capital Investments didn’t reveal was that the money was redistributed equally among several hundred of the company’s former employees, who were denied their company pensions years ago. There is a sweet irony to the old pirate Calico Zack having his money stolen by cyber pirates. Whoever the Collective might be, they seem to have both a sense of justice and a sense of humour."GalNet: Rackham Hacked 05 OCT 3304 *Harlow Nassry reported on the Rackham Ultratech Expo for the Federal Times: "All eyes were on Herculean Machines and Supratech, whose competing designs for personal computers have created a real buzz. Following lavish presentations from rival CEOs Maddox Hurd and Scorpio DeVorrow, prototypes of the Duradrive and Torc were given to attendees. Unfortunately for Supratech, the Torc's holographic systems did not work as planned. Most users were surrounded by an incomprehensible aura of colours and images that, in some cases, brought on nausea. The Duradrive, by contrast, functioned perfectly. The highlight of the expo came when Zachary Rackham tested a Duradrive by jumping on it, before using it to contact his chief accountant and authorise preliminary funding for the device. He told the crowd, 'I could have done with one of these back in my spacefaring days!' It's clear that the support given to Herculean Machines by the galactic community has allowed them to deliver a superior product – one we can expect to see on the market soon."GalNet: Herculean Machines Dominates Expo 28 SEP 3304 * Technology journalist Harlow Nassry noted that Zachary Rackham would be attending the Rackham Ultratech Expo in-person to try out prototypes of Herculean Machines' Duradrive and Supratech's Torc.GalNet: Computer Companies Resume Development 16 AUG 3304 * Billionaire Zachary Rackham was confirmed to be the winner of the Federal Grand Lottery's one billion credit Galactic Jackpot. Federal Grand Lottery spokesperson Tori Theopolis announced: "Our annual galactic jackpot has been claimed and the winning ticket verified. Our congratulations to Mr. Rackham – we hope he enjoys his billion-credit prize." Rackham told the media: "To be honest, this caught me by surprise. I only buy lottery tickets out of habit, a holdover from the days when I used to rattle around space in a rusty old Sidewinder. Naturally I'll be donating this windfall to various charitable programmes." Financial journalist Bryanna Blanco scoffed at Rackham's claim, insinuating that he was more likely to use the prize money to pay off Rackham Capital Investments' massive unpaid tax bill.GalNet: Billionaire Wins Lottery 20 JUN 3304 * Billionaire Zachary Rackham, owner of Rackham Capital Investments, revealed he had made a large charitable donation to fund the development of new shipyards in the Colonia Region. As a result, all existing surface ports in the area with the exception of Colonia Hub, which already possessed a shipyard, were able to open shipyards immediately. Financial journalist Bryanna Blanco noted that Rackham's donation coincidentally occurred shortly before a company-wide audit.GalNet: Investor Funds Colonia Shipyards References Category:Characters